“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance Miss Azulaphael,” Terync said, his throat still burning a bit from the alcohol.
“Lady,” Ser Meartin snarled, sloshing some of the liquid out of his cup. “You’ll damn well call her a lady.”
“Despite her lack of official status,” the Commandant cut in gruffly, “we still tend to use the title ‘Lady’, as shall you.”
“I’m sure the young man will find his own name for me soon enough,” the Lady Azulaphael said with a light chuckle. “They all do eventually.” She shot a sideways look at Meartin who was pointedly ignoring her.
“You are still confused,” she continued, likely reading the look on the young knight-to-be’s face. “It is regarding the nature of the partnership, is it not?”
Terync immediately blushed. The thought had risen to the top of his mind that this kind of secret partnership seemed more like a marriage, especially the way that the Lady and Ser Meartin acted with each other. How that kind of relationship involved him was a mystery, and part of him wondered if perhaps they had a daughter that they intended to marry him off to.
That would certainly explain the whole secret cabal piece of it, he figured. A single family at the very heart of the Dragon Knights, controlling everything and wielding the full power of the Order for their personal gain. While he had never heard any rumors of such a thing that didn’t mean that it wasn’t possible, just that if it were true, that sole family was exceptionally good at secrecy.
“These partnerships have nothing to do with love or marriage,” the Lady explained, responding as if he spoke his thoughts, “though it can often feel as strong as any familial bond. The nature of every partnership, however, does vary greatly between those in our small cadre.” She glanced over at the Commandant who had placed his large hand on the neck of the panther, now seated at his side.
“These partnerships,” the Commandant said, taking over the explanation, “also do not last forever. We lead dangerous lives and don’t often find ourselves in the enviable position of retiring with honors.”
“Enviable, bah!” Meartin growled. “I’ll trade ya any day sonny.”
Both the Lady and the Commandant ignored the elderly knight, much to Terync’s unease. It felt incredibly disrespectful to simply disregard the older knight in such a blatant way. It was certainly not what they were taught as whelps.
“As I was saying, this is a rare situation we find ourselves in. Ser Meartin’s partner, the Lady Azulaphael, is in need of a new partner. She has…” he paused for a moment, as if searching for the right word, “…selected you.”
The lady leaned forward and smiled. “Let me answer the question I know you have swirling in your mind. Why you? I’m not entirely certain, but I know you are the right choice. Of all of the knights I have studied these past few weeks, you possess the greatest capacity for this partnership.
“What that means,” she said, holding up a hand as she noticed his mouth opening to ask a question, “is hard to explain directly. Let me ask instead what you recall of the tournament today, specifically in your last two matches. Can you give me a play by play of the semifinal and final bouts?”